Initially described as ‘paralysed from the waist down,’ this mongrel pooch is now known for her liberating wheels. This four-legged bundle of joy has impacted the lives of many with her strength, and the dedication of her human friends towards her betterment and that is nothing short of admirable.

Only 45 days old, this pup was rescued in Bangalore by a compassionate 3D animator named Ankur Bhatnagar. He rushed her to a veterinarian doctor where he learnt that the dog wouldn’t be able to walk on her four limbs again. Ankur named her Moana after the Disney movie that had released around the same time.

Moana’s details were put on Facebook as he wasn’t able to take care of her by himself. Soon, this chirpy puppy was adopted by Rekha Vijayakumar.

Not only did Moana get her loving adoptive parent through Facebook, but help also came from a young class 7 student Abhinav Rao living in Mangalore. He came across Moana’s details through Mahesh Nayak, Rekha’s brother.

Nayak, a media professional, is an ardent advocate of the trusty old piggy bank as a means to save money and he imbibes the same values in the children he meets. Abhinav was one such child.

Upon hearing about Moana’s condition, Abhinav decided to break open the piggy bank and use the savings to help Moana get a second-hand wheel cart. In conversation with Bangalore Mirror, Abhinav said, “I love dogs but I can’t keep one in my house because I live in a flat. Mahesh uncle knew about Moana and I saw her pictures. She looked helpless. My parents buy me everything that I want and hence I decided to help her. I am helping a dog for the first time.”

Abhinav with his ‘cracked open’ savings for Moana’s wheels

Moana’s new life on wheels filled her with zeal. This garnered the attention of Vinayak Joshi, an RJ, actor, director and runner, currently working on a web series called Josh-e-lay that depicts real-life inspiring stories from around the spectrum. The moment he saw Moana sprinting freely he decided to feature her in the web series.

“Over a period of time, I have realised that we have forgotten to appreciate good things around us and we are only being cynical and critical about things that we see. In order to bring back appreciation among our own people and to find a hero among people around us, I came up with this idea of doing Josh-e-lay. The web series has more than 28 real stories that include Moana’s too. I got to know about Moana when I was running. She is an inspiration. Moana plays an important role in episode three that was released recently,” Joshi said.

Moana’s pictures also appeared in a calendar. “We were so excited when we received a table calendar of an animal charity from my sister. It had Moana, the wheel cart dog, on the cover,” Nayak said to the Bangalore Mirror.

Moana being featured in the calendar

An adorable internet sensation, Moana is the same dog who does not have any control over her bowel movements and has to wear a diaper almost all the time. However, that hasn’t stopped her from loving mom Rekha with all her heart.

“Handling a disabled dog means a lot of work. Shelters are not the right place for such dogs. They may be challenged, but they give you the same amount of love. It teaches children good morals; to be compassionate towards animals and donate for their well-being. We hope that more people come forward and adopt differently abled dogs that need a home,” Rekha told.

This wheel-cart dog has not just made Rekha proud, she has also added the required essence to Vinayak’s web series while motivating children like Abhinav to help for a cause and has made Ankur assist in almost 87 dog adoptions.